Emotions
by CtrlAltFanfics
Summary: Nobody would expect that Kaoru Hitachiin, famous for his romantic relationship with his twin brother, Hikaru, at the Ouran High School Host Club, had a past of being bullied. It's been a secret that the Hitachiin twins had kept a secret for years. But when Takuto Toriyama, Kaoru's childhood tormentor, returns to Bunkyo, Kaoru realizes that his worst memories may come back to life.
1. The Dream

"_Oh, no," young Kaoru thought to himself._

_He had just found himself standing, paralyzed with fear, on the school playground. His eyes, wide with pure terror, stared right up into the eyes of Kaoru's worst enemy- Takuto Toriyama, Ouran Elementary School's biggest and meanest bully. _

_Takuto towered over him, blocking out the sunlight and in its place, casting a long, dark shadow over the trembling boy._

_The other kids stopped playing when they saw what was happening. Bullying wasn't unusual at Ouran Elementary, and it was oftentimes stopped before it got too serious; but all of the students knew that if Takuto was about to bully someone, it wasn't the best idea to try to stop him. _

_The kids screamed and fled the playground, running to seek shelter from the safety of the school building._

_Takuto grabbed the front of Kaoru's green uniform shirt and pulled him up off the ground. He brought his face right to Kaoru's, and sneered. "Guess what day it is, runt," he spat._

_Kaoru looked behind Takuto. Takuto's friends, all of whom were just as snobby and mean as Takuto and looked to him as their leader, stood menacingly, looking at Kaoru, jeering and laughing at him._

_Out of the corner of his eye, Kaoru noticed a figure in the distance. He squinted to get a better look. It was his twin brother, Hikaru. He was the only student who hadn't run from Takuto's wrath. "Thank God," Kaoru thought with a slight feeling of relief._

_He was knocked back into reality when Takuto dropped him. He fell to the ground, and sat for a moment, dazed. Takuto prepared to strike, when- _

"_Run, Kaoru! Run!" _

_He could hear Hikaru screaming at him from his watching place in the distance. Takuto and his friends turned around and spotted Hikaru, waving and hollering._

_Takuto barked orders to his devoted followers. He pointed in Hikaru's direction."After him!"As they nodded and charged after Hikaru, Takuto turned back to deal with Kaoru- only to find he was gone. _

_Kaoru was running as fast as his short 2nd grade legs could carry him. He could feel his heart pounding in his throat, and the wind racing through his short, blazing red hair. He turned his head to find Takuto stealthily sprinting behind him, slowly closing in, preparing to catch him. _

_Kaoru knew that he was good as caught, but he kept running, harder and harder, until he tripped and face-planted on the grass. He immediately scrambled to get up, desperate to get back on his feet and keep running, but alas, it was too late. Takuto had finally caught him._

_Harsh, cold hands grabbed Kaoru's shirt collar and jerked him off the ground. A pair of muscular arms seized his shoulders and arms, keeping him from moving his torso. _

_To his horror, Kaoru saw two of Takuto's accomplices holding back a struggling Hikaru, who was trying with all his strength to break through the barrier in front of him so he could help his brother. "Kaoru!" he screamed. "Kaoru!"_

_Kaoru looked up, struggling to break free. Takuto stood in front of him, an icy glare and an evil, twisted grin plastered on his face. He raised his fist, and Kaoru braced himself._

_A brilliant, white flash of light flooded Kaoru's vision, and he screamed in pain. His right eye was wracked with unbearable pain, and it was swelling and becoming puffy from Takuto's punch. Kaoru's eyes began to become watery from the pain, and he bit his tongue to keep himself from crying out._

_Takuto brought his fist down again. *Crack!* Another flash of light. Another scream of pain. Kaoru's nose was broken, and he could already feel the blood dripping, running down his chin and falling to the ground._

"_NO!" Hikaru screeched. He struggled to break free from his captors, only to be silenced with a stinging slap to his cheek. He couldn't bear to helplessly watch his brother being beaten to a pulp, but he was forced to watch the gruesome show nonetheless._

_Takuto delivered one more blow; this time, to the side of Kaoru's skull. *Flash!* Kaoru was released from the vice-grip of his captor, and he crumpled to the ground in a heap. But Takuto wasn't done. He signaled to the others, and they joined in._

_For the next five minutes, Kaoru was grabbed, pulled, punched, kicked and slapped by cruel, harsh hands. Hikaru could only watch and cry his brother's name and hopelessly scream at the bullies, telling them to stop, but to no avail._

_At last, they backed away. Takuto turned to his accomplices, his mouth twisted into a dark smile, and declared a job-well done. He then turned his glare to Hikaru. Approaching the boy and grabbing his collar, he hissed at Hikaru, _

"_You're lucky we didn't come after you. But I hope you enjoyed the show." He gestured towards Kaoru, whose battered body lay, in a heap, on the ground. _

_He turned back to Hikaru. "Now, you listen to me, boy. Next time, keep your puny nose out of our business, unless you want to end up like your brother."_

_Takuto released his grip, and shoved Hikaru to the ground. He turned to his friends and called, "Come on, boys." They joined him, and they walked back to the school building, high-fiving each other and whooping and cheering all the way._

_Hikaru ran to Kaoru's body. He fell to his knees and turned Kaoru over so he was laying on his back._

_Kaoru's clothes were filthy and stained from the grass, and his once clean, pale-white skin was now covered in dirt, cuts, bruises, scrapes and scars. His usually neat and kempt red hair was tangled and matted with blades of grass and leaves._

_Blood was oozing from his nose and various cuts on his body, and his right eye, having become a deep purple, was swollen shut. His mouth was open, exposing random holes where pearly-white teeth had once been._

_Hikaru began to choke up. He gently lay his brother's body on the ground, and he rested his head on Kaoru's chest, which he could feel was slowly rising and falling. Hikaru struggled to fight back the tears, but he eventually gave up and began to sob, his face buried in Kaoru's chest. _

_And for a moment, they were all alone. The world was at a standstill. Everything was quiet..._

Kaoru screamed and jolted awake, resulting in him falling over the edge of his bed and onto the floor below. He immediately sat up.

Hikaru, alarmed from the sudden noise, woke up. He rubbed the tired out his eyes and called out his brother's name. "Kaoru?"

"D-down here, Hikaru," Kaoru stuttered in reply.

Hikaru climbed out of bed and sleepily walked over to the floor area at Kaoru's side of the bed. Sure enough, Kaoru, dressed only in a white T-shirt, socks, and boxers, was sitting on the floor. To Hikaru's alarm, the poor boy was drenched in cold sweat and breathing heavily.

"What's the matter, brother? Was it a nightmare?" Hikaru asked.

Kaoru only quickly nodded in reply.

"Was it the flashback?"

Another silent nod. Kaoru hugged his knees and gently rocked back and forth on his hindquarters, continuing to hyperventilate and looking worryingly up at Hikaru.

Hikaru rushed over to help his brother. He helped Kaoru up and onto the bed, and fetched a cold cloth for him to use to cool off and mop up the sweat. Reaching his hand under Kaoru's shirt to feel his heartbeat, Hikaru found that Kaoru's heartbeat was dramatically fast.

Hikaru spoke calmly and gently to Kaoru, telling him to take deep breaths. Kaoru obeyed and slowed down his breathing. As Hikaru felt his heartbeat, he could feel it gradually slowing down, beat by beat.

Once Kaoru was calmed down, Hikaru wrapped his arms around his brother and cuddled him closely. Kaoru hugged him back, and the brothers held each other.

"It's okay, Kaoru. That was in the past, it was all in the past." Hikaru assured Kaoru.

"B-but what if Takuto comes back?" Kaoru asked worryingly. "What if they-"

"Sshh, shh," Hikaru hushed his brother. Stroking Kaoru's hair, he said quietly,

"It will be okay, they'll never come back. They've been gone for years. Takuto moved out of Bunkyo when we were in middle school, remember? He'll never find us here. Everything will be okay, Kaoru."

Kaoru nodded quietly in response.

The twins held each other, and together, they sat, taking in the silence and peace of the night.


	2. A Special Meeting

{3 months later}

* * *

><p>It was a peaceful fall afternoon in Bunkyo. The once full, pink-and-white sakuras were now brown and bare, their petals falling and drifting through the air like fat snowflakes.<p>

The sun was shining brightly over the city, yet a chilly breeze blew through the streets, and pedestrians could be seen sporting warm jackets, gloves, and caps as they navigated their way through the sidewalk bustle.

{Pan over above Ouran Academy}

*RING DUHLING DELING DUHLING DELING!*

A great metal bell rang, breaking the silence. The grand brass doors to the Academy slowly swung open, and students began to pile out in a large, sky-blue and light-yellow crowd.

As the students made their way out of the school and into the courtyards, the Hitachiin twins, Kaoru and Hikaru, stepped out of the massive doors, down the large, gray stone steps, and down the sidewalk, slowly drawing away from the school building.

The twins were almost completely indistinguishable from one another- they were both the same height, and wore the same light-blue Ouran uniforms. They even wore their flaming red hair the same way- short and neatly groomed.

They walked together, chatting about the events of the school day as they treaded through the cherry blossom petals falling around them.

"Ugh," Hikaru moaned, slumping over and dangling his long arms towards the ground as he and Kaoru made their way toward the Ouran High School gardens.

"I stayed awake all night, studying for that history final, but I'm about 99.9% sure I still failed it, anyway."

Kaoru looked over and gave his brother an assuring smile. Patting his shoulder, he spoke cheerfully.

"Don't worry, brother! I'm sure you did great!"

As they entered the gardens, Hikaru straightened up a little. He looked up at Kaoru hopefully.

"Really? You think so?"

"I'm sure of it!" a beaming Kaoru replied.

"You had said that you were 99.9% sure you failed. There was still a 0.1% chance you _didn't_, so there's still the possibility that you passed that final. The chance was small, but I think you did good.

"Besides, it wouldn't matter if you failed. You tried your best, and that's all that matters."

He gave Hikaru another bright smile, and Hikaru reassumed his usual stance.

"You're the best, brother." The brothers paused in their tracks for a moment, dropping their schoolbooks onto the concrete sidewalk as they embraced.

As they crouched to gather their things, Kaoru asked excitedly, "Did you hear that there was going to be a new student here tomorrow?"

Hikaru, surprised by the news, dropped one of his pencils.

"Really? Who is it? What's their- gah!" Seeing the pencil rolling away, he chased after it, much to the amusement of a laughing Kaoru.

Hikaru returned, with an annoyed expression on his face and the yellow pencil clutched in his pale fist, and resumed collecting his books, muttering under his breath.

Kaoru laughed, having been entertained by Hikaru's antics, then breathed a heavy sigh.

"The teachers don't know yet. They said all they know is that he was a student who used to live in Japan, but moved away to serve as an exchange student in England."

He shrugged. "I guess his family decided to move back or something."

Having picked up his possessions, he helped Hikaru gather his things. The twins stood up and continued walking.

"Hmm… a _boy_, you say?" Hikaru pondered out loud. He turned to Kaoru and grinned.

"Perhaps we can invite him to join the Host Club!"

Kaoru returned the grin. "Tamaki would most certainly be pleased. After all, it would be the perfect way for the newcomer to learn more about the school and meet new people. We have all kinds of events for other students- surely, he would enjoy them, as well as entertaining our clients."

The twins high-fived each other, resulting in Hikaru accidentally losing his grip and dropping his books a second time. Kaoru stood for a moment, laughing at his brother, until he dropped his books as well.

He immediately stopped laughing, and the brothers stared at each other in a moment of awkward silence.

They both then began laughing hysterically, and some of the other students, alarmed by the sudden outburst, quickly turned their heads and looked in the direction of the noise.

While some of them stared at the twins, puzzled, many of them- particularly the girls- squealed in delight.

Many of the girls at Ouran High School who visited the Host Club fell in love with the Hitachiins. They loved the way Hikaru grabbed Kaoru, protectively holding him close and cooing sweet romantic things into his ear, and the way an instantly smitten Kaoru would swoon and coo back. It was that act that made the Hitachiins popular in the Host Club- they were the little devils of the club, after all.

Once the twins had calmed down from their mishap, they helped each other gather their books. Hikaru stood up, one hand wrapped tightly around his things, and reached the other down to help Kaoru stand up.

They smiled warmly at one another, then turned and continued walking together through the school gardens.

X~X~X

Later that afternoon, Tamaki gathered the Host Club members for a special meeting in Music Room #3.

As he ushered them to take a seat on the plush sofas, he slammed his hands down on the tea table, silencing the group.

"Now! As you all know…" He paced around the room, forming gestures with his hands as he spoke with his serious President-of-the-Host-Club voice.

Tamaki stopped in his tracks, facing his fellow Hosts, and clapped his hands together. "There is going to be a new arrival at Ouran High School tomorrow!"

He continued pacing.

"The teachers haven't heard much about this new student, but one thing they do know.."

He stopped again. "It is a boy! A third year, to be precise." He raised one of his long fingers on the last part, as if he were about to make an objection in a court trial.

"He is an exchange student, originally from our own country of Japan, but he joined an exchange program and his family had to move to Great Britain, to attend a boarding school in England."

Tamaki then gestured towards his fellow members.

"Now…" He held his hand to his chin, resting the elbow of said hand into his other. As he continued speaking, his romantic, smittening tone (the one he usually used in front of his customers and Haruhi) began to appear in his voice.

He raised his finger again. "I, as the President of the Ouran High School Host Club, have come up with a proposal!"

He clapped his slender hands together again. At this point, his King-of-the-Host-Club tone had finally manifested itself completely.

"We shall welcome the boy into the Host Club! _I_," (he gestured towards himself), "will do the honor of personally taking him under my wing and training him to become a fully-fledged Host!" He swept out his hand, and a wave of white and gold sparkles seemed to fly out from his fingertips. His brilliant blue eyes shone brightly.

The other Host Club members began to mutter quietly amongst themselves.

The Hitachiin twins glanced to each other in awe, turned to Tamaki and blurted out in unison, "That's what _we _were thinking of!"

A tired Haruhi, her face remaining completely cleared of expression amidst the excitement, sat up on her place on the couch and groggily lifted her head from the arm of the couch arm.

She spoke with an unamused tone in her voice.

"What good would that do?"

"Haruhi, my darling…" He smiled sweetly and gently helped her up off the couch.

As the Hosts watched, Tamaki placed one arm around Haruhi and walked her around the room, lecturing her.

"Now, Haruhi.." Tamaki gestured out in front of him. "What better way to introduce a young man to a new school than teaching him to charm the girls?"

Haruhi stared plainly up at him. "To me, that seems rather point-"

Tamaki's slender finger raced to meet with Haruhi's lips. Haruhi fell silent at once.

As they continued to stroll around, Tamaki looked at her and smiled.

"You see, my darling, every boy has the potential of finding a lover- a girl he can call his own forever. It may take a matter of time- days, weeks, months, or even years- but one day, he will find the girl he will spend the rest of his life with. And when that happens…"

Tamaki gave Haruhi a rather cunning smirk. "... He will need to know exactly how to please her, to make her swoon and faint in his arms."

He let go of her and quietly walked to the window, where for a moment, he looked out over the main courtyard. He saw a young couple sitting together on a bench, and watched as they held each other, speaking softly to each other and admiring the ambiance of the sunny afternoon.

The Host Club's Shadow King, Kyoya, who seemed to appear out of nowhere, stood, leaning against a massive stone pillar near the corner of the room.

"After all, accepting another Host would mean more customers would want to come in and see the new addition.. and you know what that would mean."

As he wrote something down in his mysterious black book, a devilish grin creeped out from the corner of his mouth.

Tamaki stared concerningly at Kyoya for a moment, then cleared his throat. "Yes, well… good point, Kyoya."

He turned to the others.

"According to Kyoya, taking the new student into our care could be a great financial opportunity for the Host Club as well."

Tamaki walked back to the gathering of Host Club members. He stopped in front of the couch, and turned and stood before the Hosts.

"With that being said, we shall prepare a glorious celebration to welcome this new student. It shall be one of the biggest events we, as the Ouran High School Host Club, have ever hosted!" He struck a dramatic pose on the last part, sweeping his arm through the air again. More sparkles flew.

He clapped his hands together.

"Now… does anyone have any ideas for what this occasion should be?"

For a moment, the room was silent. The Hosts were trying to think of something.

Kaoru and Hikaru looked at each other in thought, then turned to Tamaki and simultaneously shrugged their shoulders.

Haruhi plopped back down on the couch and curled up in a ball, propping her arm up to support her head, fighting to stay awake so she could help her fellow members as they brainstormed, but to no avail. In a matter of a few minutes, she was fast asleep.

Kyoya, as always, remained silent, and he continued to quietly write in his book, occasionally smirking at his peers as he tended to his own business.

Mori sat placidly on the side of the couch opposite to Haruhi. Honey was perched comfortably in his lap, tightly hugging his stuffed rabbit, Usa-chan, and thinking out loud.

"Maybe we could-" the tiny 3rd-year student began, sitting straight up and his eyes sparkling with hope, just as if he had an epiphany.

He sank back down. "No, that wouldn't work." He wrapped his short arms around Usa-chan and squeezed it tightly.

Mori suddenly piped up, his low voice just audible.

"Perhaps an English-style tea party would be enough."

The others stopped and looked at him for a moment.

"Why is that so, Mori?" Tamaki questioned him, his eyebrow raised.

Mori spoke again, and the Hosts leaned in closer to hear him.

"Despite that he is most likely from a school as big as our own…." He circled his long arms around, gesturing towards the room in its entirety.

"... He may be easily overwhelmed by the new changes and the new people. Give the poor boy a break, why not just give him something simple? He's probably facing enough as it is, having to move away from the life he learned to love. I'm sure he would greatly appreciate the quiet welcome, not something that would frighten him."

Mori's arms returned to their place on his chest, and he crossed them. He raised his eyebrow.

"Besides, making the party based off of tea tradition in Great Britain would help him experience the foreign culture one last precious time, before he would have to abandon English traditions to reconnect to ours."

He fell silent, and the other Hosts began to murmur in awe.

Kyoya appeared behind Mori and clasped a pale hand on his shoulder.

"Very well said," the Shadow King spoke quietly, flashing Mori a rare smile.

Tamaki, having been stunned by Mori's reasoning, stared, open-mouthed and wide-eyed, at Kyoya and Mori. He shut his mouth and shook his head, as if he were bringing himself back into reality.

His mischievous smile returned to his face, and he raised his finger again, as if to object.

"Very well, then! I believe it has been decided. We, the Ouran High School Host Club, shall prepare and host a spectacular party! And we shall celebrate it like…"

Tamaki seemed to be at a loss for words for a moment, then he found them again.

"... well, like 'jolly ol' Brits!'" He swung his arm and attempted a British accent, but failed hilariously, much to the amusement of the other Hosts who began to laugh. Haruhi, alarmed by the sudden noise, jerked awake and looked around groggily. The Hosts laughed again.

Tamaki couldn't help but chuckle with them. Then he clapped his hands together.

"All right! Let's get to work!"

And with that, the Hosts scrambled out of their seats and set off to work.


	3. Takuto's Return

{Early the next morning}

* * *

><p>Tamaki pulled up his sleeve to glance at his watch. The tiny, intricate hands pointed to 7 and 10.<p>

_Only ten more minutes!, _the Host Club King thought to himself.

He slid his sleeve back up to his wrist, concealing the watch, and looked proudly around the music room.

Overnight, he and the other Hosts were able to transform it into a perfect, spotless (Tamaki just _had_ to point out how clean the British kept things), British-like tea room, complete with fine china and silverware, doilies, and even an imported oil painting of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (courtesy of Kyoya), which hung on the wall by the doors.

Tamaki looked down and dusted off his black tuxedo, then straightened up his black silk top hat. He glanced around to make sure all of the Hosts were accounted for.

Honey, clad in a dark blue sweater with a white dress shirt, tie and grey pants, sat curled up in a chair in the corner, taking care of Usa-chan, who was even dressed up for the occasion- a tiny brown coat with a matching cap, making him look like a miniature Sherlock Holmes.

The Hitachiin twins, sporting matching a white dress shirt, black vest and tie, and black dress slacks and shoes, were standing by the dish table, loudly debating over why the British had different silverware for different foods instead of just using the same type of fork or spoon for everything.

As usual, Kyoya wasn't there with the Hosts. _Probably just off, crunching numbers or balancing the Host Club's checkbook or something like he always does,_ Tamaki thought. When Kyoya was gone, nobody would know where he had gone off to, but nobody dared to ask.

Mori, dressed exactly like a British royal guard, complete with a tall, furry black hat and a gold-and-silver-decorated red coat, stood stiffly and silently next to the doors.

Tamaki laughed to himself; earlier that morning, the Hosts laughed until they cried when Mori first walked out of the backroom after putting on the guard costume. Since then, he hadn't said much, but that wasn't surprising coming from him.

"Alright, Hosts!" Tamaki announced, and all of the Hosts stopped what they were doing and looked over at him.

He was suddenly cut off by Haruhi's seemingly disembodied voice.

"Well, Tamaki…"

All of the Hosts turned toward the voice and saw Haruhi as she stepped out of the backroom. They gazed in awe as she appeared wearing a long, trailing, blood-red dress. Her pixie-cut brown hair was pinned back, exposing her small pale face and ears.

She looked up at Tamaki with her large brown eyes.

"Was this really necessary, Tamaki?" she asked quietly.

Tamaki was rendered speechless. His monocle fell from his face and fell to the floor, where it shattered into tiny glass shards. Honey, having noticed the monocle breaking, ran over, dropped to his knees, cleaned up the pieces and disposed of them.

"H-Haruhi…." Tamaki stuttered.

He cleared his throat.

"... You look beautiful."

Although she's heard this before, Haruhi blushed from Tamaki's remark.

She gave him a weak smile. "Thank you," she spoke quietly.

Tamaki stared dreamily at Haruhi for a moment, completely dazed by her beauty, but was suddenly knocked back into reality. He turned around to see the Hosts, who were also too busy staring at Haruhi in utter surprise.

He loudly cleared his throat. "Ahem." The others snapped their attention back to him.

Tamaki turned to them and raised his cane. "We only have a matter of a few minutes before the new student arrives at the school."

He nodded to Mori. "Open the doors. Let the customers in."

Mori nodded silently, solemnly walked to the doors and slowly opened them. He was almost trampled as a huge crowd of girls came pouring in.

Haruhi watched as they quickly filled the room, and the Hosts began to take immediate action to entertaining them. She could only watch for a few seconds before someone took her arm and pulled her towards the backroom.

She turned and saw it was Tamaki, who began to open the backroom door and shove her in.

"Wait a minute-" Haruhi started, and Tamaki stopped for a moment.

"You're leaving me in here?" she looked up at him worryingly.

Tamaki quickly nodded. "I'm sorry, my dear, but we can't afford to let the girls find out that you're really a girl. It's for the best, Haruhi."

"Oh, my God! It's Tamaki Suoh!" one of the clients shrieked, and some of the other girls joined in as they started squealing excitedly.

Tamaki freaked out for a moment, then darted his attention over to the girls gawking at him. "Coming, my sweets!" he spoke with his romantic King-of-the-Host-Club voice, smiling warmly.

He quickly turned back to Haruhi, who was struggling to push past him to come back out into the music room. He held her by her shoulders and spoke calmly and assuringly. "Don't worry, darling. We will let you out when the clients have left. You will be able to meet the new student, I promise."

He smiled, his pearly-white teeth flashing at her, then quickly shut the backroom door and locked it.

Haruhi panicked, and pounded on the door once or twice. "Let me out!" she yelled, but the room had become too loud for anyone to hear her.

She pressed her ear to the door. She could just barely make out Tamaki saying something sweet and romantic to one of his lucky clients…

Was that a thumping sound she just heard? Haruhi shrugged to herself. _Probably the girl fainting. That happens a lot._

Haruhi soon backed off and sighed. In the meantime, she would have to find something else to do to keep herself from being bored.

Meanwhile, in the music room, Tamaki checked his watch again. *8:00* the watch read.

Tamaki quickly stood up tall and made an announced to everyone in the room.

"Attention, everybody!" he began with his sweet, charming voice. The customers turned their attention to their favorite Host, and the other Hosts stopped what they were doing.

Tamaki straightened himself up again. "The new student will be here in any minute! My fellow Hosts and I will be on our way outside to meet him and bring him into the school. In the meantime…" he nodded to Mori.

Flashing a smile to clients, he spoke, ".. Mori can take care of you girls."

Mori's eyes suddenly widened, and he was about to protest, but he was suddenly attacked by the large crowd of clients. They took over him, and he was pulled under, slowly sinking into the giant yellow mass.

The Hosts stared in horror for a moment, then turned to Tamaki, who grabbed his cane and pointed toward the doors with it. "Let's go, Hosts!" he beamed cheerfully.

As the Hosts, led by Tamaki, took off from the music room and down several hallways until they came to the front double doors of the school. As they stepped outside and down the large stone stairs, a long black limousine pulled up to the front parking lot of the school and came to a gentle halt.

"What do you think he's like, Hikaru?" Kaoru looked up and asked his brother.

Hikaru gazed at the limousine. "He must be rich and eccentric. Probably one of those charming upper-class boys."

Honey piped up. "I'll bet he's going to share a lot of classes with me!"

The Hosts then realized: Honey and the new student were in the same year.

Tamaki looked down at little Honey and smiled. "Well, then, be sure to take good care of him for us, alright?"

The senpai smiled brightly and nodded, "Mhm," he hummed.

The Hosts stood and watched from the front courtyard before the limo. The front passenger door opened, and a snooty-looking butler, clad in a black tuxedo and neatly-groomed black handlebar mustache, stepped out. He walked over to the passenger door in the central area of the limo and stood solemnly in wait.

Two other butlers dressed in the exact same suits as the first filed out of another door and opened the trunk. They began to pull out large bags and suitcases and set them on luggage carts.

For the next several minutes, everything was quiet. The Hosts watched in pure silence as the butlers quietly tended to their work.

Once they had retrieved everything, they started pulling the carts toward the school. One of them turned and nodded to the first, who slowly and gracefully pulled the door open.

A tall, relatively burly boy of about 15 or 16 stepped out onto the pavement. His long, shiny, jet-black hair was very well-groomed and slicked back. He wore a black overcoat; underneath, a short-sleeved white dress shirt tucked into a pair of black dress slacks, with polished black shoes.

As the boy adjusted his cufflinks for a moment, Kaoru pondered to himself.

_Wait a minute… _He swore he had seen the boy before.

His eyes widened in a moment of realization, and he fell to the ground in a heap.

The new student, the boy standing before the Host Club, was none other than Kaoru's childhood bully, Takuto Toriyama.


	4. Reawakening

In Kaoru's eyes, the world had suddenly plummeted into pitch-black darkness. Dead silence and a strange feeling of serenity flooded his mind. Everything was still and calm.

After what felt like an eternity, Kaoru began to return to consciousness. He tried to open his eyes, but his eyelids seemed to be made out of lead.

He closed his eyes again for a brief moment, then opened them again, only to be greeted with a blinding flash of light.

Kaoru tried to raise his arm to shield his eyes, but it felt too heavy to lift. In fact, as he regained feeling in his extremities, he found himself to be too weak to move at all.

He slowly raised his head and looked around. For a moment, the blinding light lingered, but soon petered out, but even then, the world was fading in and out of focus.

He closed his eyes one last time and lightly shook his head, then weakly opened his eyes again. The world came into focus again, and Kaoru realized where he was- lying in a simple, plain white bed in the school hospital ward.

"Hey, Kaoru. You okay, buddy?" a gentle voice spoke, and a hand suddenly touched his shoulder.

A startled Kaoru flinched and quickly turned his head to find his brother, Hikaru, sitting in a chair next to his bed, looking at him with large, worried eyes.

Realizing he alarmed his twin, Hikaru reached out and stroked Kaoru's hair. He said softly, "It's okay, Kaoru, it's just me."

Kaoru was immediately calmed by his brother's gentle touch. He quietly turned and gazed at the blank white wall at the far end of the ward.

"What happened?" he spoke quietly.

Hikaru began with Kaoru's fainting, but Kaoru had quickly managed to mentally put the pieces back together.

_Takuto. Takuto Toriyama, my worst enemy, my biggest childhood fear, and the monster that roams in my nightmares all rolled into one giant package of horror… has come back._

Kaoru immediately sat up, looked up at Hikaru, his eyes wide with fear, and began to panic.

"He-he's back, Hikaru. Takuto c-came back." He could barely speak; he was shaking from pure terror, and he started hyperventilating.

He just couldn't believe what was happening. Hikaru had told him several months beforehand that everything would be fine, and that Takuto would be gone and out of Kaoru's life for as long as he lived.

But earlier that morning, a limousine pulls up to the school, and who steps out? Takuto Toriyama. Of all people, it had to be Takuto.

Kaoru's mind was practically drowning in horrible childhood memories, thoughts, and fear, even as he was just _imagining _what Takuto had in store for him the next time they saw one another.

He could already begin to feel his muscles and nerves freezing up from the shock.

Hikaru lunged onto the bed and pulled Kaoru into a tight hug, one arm wrapped around Kaoru's body protectively, and another rubbing and massaging his back. As he gently kneaded his fingers into his brother's back, he could feel the tightness beginning to ease.

Kaoru relaxed for a moment, but his body immediately went rigid again, and he cried out in pain.

"Easy, Kaoru, easy now," Hikaru whispered softly. He continued to rub Kaoru's back, his hands slowly making their way towards his stiff shoulders. Kaoru calmed down again, sighing with relief, and quietly sat as he let Hikaru do his job.

After a moment of peace, Hikaru finished, and the brothers hugged each other tightly.

Hikaru pulled away and looked into Kaoru's worried eyes.

"It will be okay, Kaoru," he assured gently. "I will be here for you if anything happens. Okay?"

Kaoru nodded silently in reply.

The twins hugged again, and held each other, sharing a few more quiet minutes together.

Hikaru then broke away, climbing off the bed and up onto his feet. Dusting off his clothes, he turned to Kaoru and smiled sweetly, extending his hand.

"Come on. Let's go meet up with the others."

Kaoru cautiously took Hikaru's hand, and he was gently pulled up and out of the bed.

As his feet landed uneasily on the floor, he felt clumsy and awkward, like a newborn foal. He almost collapsed, but Hikaru quickly rushed to his aid, seizing Kaoru's arm, throwing it over his own back, and wrapping his arm around Kaoru's torso.

"I've gotcha," Hikaru spoke assuringly.

Kaoru laughed.

"I think I can handle this, brother," he said, and Hikaru released his grip.

Kaoru stumbled and nearly fell flat on his face, but after taking a few shaky steps, as Hikaru watched, he was able to walk himself around the ward with no problem.

"Look Ma, no hands!" he joked, waving his hands in the air, and Hikaru couldn't help but laugh.

Hikaru turned on his heel and opened the hospital ward door with a flourish. Kaoru walked through the doorway and out into the hallway, grinning and nodding gratefully at his brother as he passed. Hikaru followed closely behind him, letting the door slam shut behind them.

X~X~X

Tamaki turned to find Hikaru bursting in through the music room doors. He was surprised to see that Kaoru was with him.

"Ah, Kaoru! You're awake!" Tamaki smiled warmly and gestured for Kaoru to join him by his side.

Kaoru peered behind Tamaki. Closer to the opposite side of the room, he could see Takuto.

_What is he doing?_ Kaoru pondered.

To his surprise, Takuto seemed to be enjoying a conversation with Honey, who was holding Usa-chan behind his back. He produced the rabbit and held it up to Takuto, saying something that Kaoru couldn't make out.

Kaoru was expecting Takuto to do something horrible, like seize Usa-chan and tear him limb from limb right in front of Honey, but instead, he smiled sweetly and politely held and shook the rabbit's front paw.

Honey squeezed Usa-chan tightly, and Takuto smiled again, reaching down and patting the little senpai's blonde-haired head.

Kaoru was amazed. _Huh.. he doesn't seem to be that much of a bad guy anymore._

Tamaki cleared his throat and waved his hand in front of Kaoru's face. "Hello? Earth to Kaoru. Do you read?"

Kaoru flinched. He shook his head a little to make himself focus again and smiled at Tamaki, accepting his outstretched hand.

Right as they began to walk across the room, Kaoru felt a hand touch his shoulder.

He turned around. Much to his surprise, Hikaru was right behind him.

"Keep it cool," he whispered into Kaoru's ear. "Just talk to him like nothing's wrong."

Kaoru nodded. "Got it," he whispered back.

He turned back around just in time to see Tamaki was talking to Takuto.

"Ummm…" he started awkwardly.

Tamaki turned back to Kaoru. He flashed a bright smile.

Gesturing towards Takuto, he introduced him for Kaoru.

"Kaoru, I would like to cordially introduce you to Ouran High School's new student, Takuto Toriyama."

Kaoru looked at Takuto, gave him a friendly smile, and calmly extended his hand.

"Hi. I-I'm Kaoru Hitachiin." He saw that he stumbled over his words for a second.

Takuto stood there, looking at Kaoru for a moment with a puzzled expression. Then he carefully reached out his hand, gently grasped Kaoru's and shook it politely, almost the exact same way he did with Usa-chan.

"I am Takuto Toriyama. It is quite a pleasure to meet you, Kaoru," Takuto spoke quietly and calmly, his pale face blank and emotionless. Kaoru took note of his thick British accent.

As Tamaki continued to talk to Takuto, Kaoru laughed nervously and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. He looked around the room.

He must have been out for a few hours, because the afternoon sun was shining brightly through the clear glass windows lined up on the walls, making the room seem significantly brighter than with the lights on alone.

The customers had long since left, so it was just the Hosts and Takuto. Hikaru was playing tea party with Honey and Usa-chan, and Mori (surprisingly) was sitting, relaxed and cross-legged, on the couch against the wall, quietly reading a book.

Kyoya still remained absent, but that was no surprise. Kaoru looked again. Something wasn't right here.

The sound of a door being pounded away on brought an uneasy silence into the room.

"Let me out of here!"a muffled voice cried out.

Tamaki's eyes widened.

"Oh, God, Haruhi!" he gasped. He dashed to the backroom door, unlatched the lock and flung the door open.

Haruhi came running out of the backroom and into the music room, and the other Hosts stopped to watch what was happening.

Dusting off her dress, she turned around and started to snap at Tamaki.

"Next time, why don't you let me know _before_ you stuff me into a closet and leave me for several hours?"

Tamaki attempted to approach her carefully and comfort her, but she continued to rant, slowly advancing towards him. He stepped back slowly, raising his hands defensively in front of his torso, as if she were about to throw a punch at him.

"I-I'm sorry, Haruhi." he stuttered, and he tried smiling comfortingly in hopes of calming Haruhi down. To his dismay, it didn't look like Haruhi was going to back down anytime soon.

She looked right up at him, making direct eye contact, and jabbed a finger into his chest.

"Sorry for what?! Speak for yourself, _you're _not the one who was just locked in a tiny room and left with no water or food- let alone even a _bathroom_- for almost _half_ a day!"

Haruhi continued to poke him, shouting angrily into his face, which was drained white with shock.

"And you think an _apology _is going to make me feel better?"

" I swear to God, the next time you do something like this," she began to turn away to storm off, "I won't even _hesitate_ to kick your-"

She stopped as she was right about to run into Takuto, whose wide-eyed, silent-but-shocked expression indicated that he had been rendered completely bewildered by her ranting.

For a moment, there was an awkward, unbroken silence as Haruhi and Takuto remained, frozen in place and poker-faced, as they stared at each other, Haruhi because she blew up right in front of a new student, and Takuto because not only did he just involuntarily watch, with immense shock, one of the biggest fits of rage he had ever seen in his life… but also because despite she was a complete stranger, he found himself romantically attracted to Haruhi upon seeing her burst out of the backroom.

_Blimey, ain't she a beauty, _Takuto thought to himself, gazing at Haruhi with his eyes wide with amazement.

_Too bad it looks like she's got quite the temper. Perhaps I can work around that…_

Haruhi blushed until her face was dark red.

Grinning innocently, she straightened herself up and dusted off her dress again. She awkwardly reached out and shook Takuto's hand.

"Sorry you had to see that. I'm Haruhi," she said with her sweetest tone possible.

Takuto quietly accepted her hand and shook it. "Takuto Toriyama, m'lady." Holding her hand, he raised it to his lips and kissed it gently.

Haruhi, slightly startled by the sudden gesture, drew her hand back and blushed.

She spoke quietly. "T-thank you." she blushed, giving Takuto a small but definite smile. He bowed politely, shooting Haruhi a charming smile.

Tamaki, who was just stunned by Haruhi's rage but now shocked by seeing Takuto's gesture of affection, spent a moment as he tried not to throw himself at Takuto.

_Wait a minute... _Tamaki realized. _That was… perfect. The way he gently took her hand and planted his lips on it.. the way he bowed.. _

Tamaki smiled at his own thoughts.

_Takuto would make the PERFECT host. He would just need some time, and perhaps a bit of mentoring…_

He would have to plan out Takuto's Host training later. For now...

"Alright, alright now, Hosts!" he announced proudly.

Takuto and the Hosts snapped their attention to Tamaki, who declared a brief Host Club meeting.

The Hosts were ushered into their usual spots on the music room's plush couch, which was where they usually congregated during meetings.

Kaoru and Hikaru, as always, stood behind the couch, leaning against it as everyone else sat down- Mori first, followed by Honey, who sat on his lap while cuddling Usa-chan, and Haruhi and Takuto sitting down next to one another (which made Tamaki proud but full of jealousy at the same time).

As Tamaki went explained how the rest of the day would go with Takuto's acceptance into Ouran High School and the Host Club, Kaoru straightened up a little to stretch, when he saw something out of the corner of his eye.

It was Takuto. He looked curiously around the room, then at Kaoru. His eyes locked into Kaoru's, seemingly flashing red, his eyebrows lowered, and his mouth turned up in a dark smile.


	5. A Turn for Better

"You see, Takuto…" Tamaki began as he strolled with Takuto around the courtyard. The other Hosts were gathered by a bench in the garden, watching them eagerly.

The meeting welcoming Takuto to Ouran High School had just ended, and now Tamaki wanted to convince Takuto to join the Host Club.

"He would be perfect!" little Honey squeaked.

Hikaru chimed in. "You can say that again, senpai. Did you see the way he greeted Haruhi? The guy's a natural."

Mori, still absorbed into his book, remained silent. Kaoru sat with his brother, deep in thought and quietly worrying to himself.

_What if he comes after me again? What if he beats me up just like he did in elementary school?_

Memories played back in his mind like old movies. He could remember everything like it was yesterday.

That one time when he was carrying his lunch tray through the cafeteria to sit with Hikaru, and Takuto stuck his foot out and tripped him, sending him face-planting into his mashed potatoes on the floor. He remembered Takuto and his gang laughing and pointing fingers, and everyone else laughing with them; and seeing Hikaru shocked as he ran over and helped Kaoru get up and wipe food off his face. A humiliated Kaoru was sent to the nurse to get cleaned up, his face covered in white mush and hair dripping with gravy, the other kids clearing a path for him while howling with laughter.

Another memory from that time in P.E., when the class was playing football out in the Ouran sports complex. Takuto and Kaoru were on a team together, while some of Takuto's gang members- most of them being burly and muscle-bound- were on the other. Kaoru was at one end of the field, trying to avoid getting caught in the chaos while watching what was going on. All of a sudden, he found himself holding the football in his hands- and a giant crowd of beefy players running right for him. The last thing he remembered seeing before being dog-piled on and beaten senseless was Takuto, standing away from the horde, his mouth twisted in a wicked grin. He was the one who threw the ball to Kaoru.

Many more memories of his torture-filled school days flooded Kaoru's brain, and he shuddered just thinking about all of the horrible things Takuto put him through.

He suddenly remembered Takuto's menacing stare from the meeting earlier. He knew that Takuto would come back for him. He just knew it.

Then Kaoru curiously thought about how Takuto had interacted with Haruhi.

_Well, the others are right.. he __is_ _quite the gentleman._

Despite that he saw Haruhi for the first time while she was having a fit of rage, Takuto had shown the kindest manners and utmost respect, all in an act of pure, flawless grace.

Kaoru tried to imagine Takuto as a Host- clad in a traditional sky-blue Ouran uniform, sitting at a table, enjoying a cup of tea and sweet romantic conversation with some lucky girl; he suddenly stands, walks over to her and stretches out his hand; she takes it and he pulls her out of her seat, holding her gently while softly cooing pretty things into her ear...

_Hmmm… _Kaoru began to have a different perspective on Takuto.

_Maybe he isn't a bad guy anymore. Perhaps I should let him have a second chance._

He calmed down a little, then sighed. He decided to forgive Takuto; he may have been bullying Kaoru, but at least he wasn't hurting anyone else. Kaoru especially hated it when he saw his friends being picked on or bullied.

_Besides, what's the worst that could happen? That English boarding school he went to probably straightened him up, anyway._

Tamaki and Takuto began to make their way towards the garden. They stopped in front of the other Hosts, who excitedly leaned forward to listen in on their conversation.

"So, what do you say? Do you want to join the Host Club?" Tamaki asked. The Hosts crossed their fingers, praying and hoping that he would say "yes".

Takuto seemed to look away at something in the distance. Raising a hand to his chin, he spent a few minutes thinking about what he should do next.

He turned to the others, who looked at him eagerly. He smiled at Honey and the twins- but then stopped at Haruhi. He found himself slowly being entranced by her beauty- the way her big brown eyes shone in the sun, the way the wind blew through her pixie-cut brown hair, the way she gazed at him and smiled pleasantly. Everything about her just seemed to be so attractive to Takuto. His eyes slowly widened, then returned to normal as he shook his head to bring himself back into reality.

He turned back and looked up at Tamaki. "I've come to my decision," he said quietly, his mouth beginning to turn up in a slight smile.

He paused for a dramatic effect, which he saw worked perfectly as the others, including Tamaki, all leaned forward, their eyes wide from the suspense.

Taking a deep breath, he boldly announced in front of all of them, "I will accept your invitation to join the Ouran High School Host Club."

The Hosts erupted in cheers. Tamaki stood in front of Takuto, his classic King-of-the-Host-Club smile beginning to spread across his lips.

"Takuto…"

He performed his trademark gesture: a wave of his long arm, his fingers seeming to shoot sparkles into the air above Takuto's head. He spoke with his grand Host voice.

"Welcome to Ouran High School Host Club!"

For a moment, Takuto was blinded by the sparkles, and raised his arm to shield his eyes.

The next second, when he lowered his arm back down to his side, he found himself- along with Tamaki and the other Hosts- in the music room.

He looked around confusedly.

_How did he just wave his hand, and instantly bring us here? What kind of witchcraft was that?_

Takuto looked down, and found that his usual British attire was somehow replaced with an Ouran uniform, like the one the others were wearing.

"Whoah…" he murmured to himself in amazement. He looked up and found Tamaki watching him, smiling with amusement from Takuto's confusion.

Takuto was absolutely amazed, yet at the same time, puzzled.

"How did you do that?" he asked wonderingly, looking up at Tamaki with wide eyes.

Tamaki smiled and raised a finger to his lips. "A little secret of the Host Club King," he replied.

Takuto grinned, and Tamaki began to pace around the room, walking in a circle around him. As Takuto ran to catch up with him, he noticed the other Hosts tending to clients.

"Now that you're a member of the Host Club.." Tamaki began.

Takuto looked across the room and saw a group of girls, all dressed in cream-yellow uniform dresses, were gathered around Honey, asking him various questions. To Takuto, it only looked like they were just wanting to hear the little senpai talk, shouting out with his tiny, high-pitched voice as he nuzzled Usa-chan.

He could hear one of the girls shriek, "Oh, he's _so_ cute!", and all of them began to freak out, some squealing with delight and others swooning, raising a hand to their forehead as if they were about to faint from Honey's adorable, childlike appearance.

Tamaki placed him arm around Takuto as they continued to walk. "I'm going to teach you everything there is about being a Host. In fact, as I've told the others as you arrived earlier this morning, I'm going to do you a special favor and _personally_ tutor you." He flashed Takuto a bright smile.

"You would really do that for me?" Takuto gasped.

The Host Club King nodded. "Mhm."

Curiosity began to overcome Takuto, and he soon found his head full to bursting with questions. "Well, I am very grateful that you would take me under your wing like that, Tamaki, but why?"

"Because, Takuto.."

Tamaki stopped walking for a moment, made direct eye contact with Takuto, and spoke seriously. Takuto noticed an ever-so-slight smiled forming on Tamaki's face and his large blue eyes beginning to glint with mischief.

"You may have only been here for a matter of hours, but ever since the other Hosts and I first saw you as you stepped out onto the school grounds…"

He placed his hands on Takuto's shoulders, his eyes glinting brightly.

"I immediately saw your unspoken potential as a Host. Your sturdy composure, your serene grace and confidence… it says it all. I know that you're going to one day become the perfect Host, and I've made it my personal responsibility to train you myself to make sure that happens."

He broke away. "Just stay with me and pay close attention, and before you know it, the girls will be falling for you!" He waved his arm again, sending a shower of sparkles flying into the air.

Takuto was amazed. He tried to imagine being surrounded by giddy high school girls, until the all of the girls disappeared, except for one: Haruhi.

As he continued to fantasize, he and Haruhi held each other in the midst of cherry blossom petals falling down around them, and they slowly began to lean in towards one another, their lips just about to touch-

Tamaki cleared his throat. "Ahem… Takuto?" he asked, waving his hand in front of Takuto's dazed face.

He quickly realized that Takuto was gazing dreamily at Haruhi, who was in her uniform, enjoying a conversation with some of her clients.

Takuto suddenly snapped his attention to Tamaki. "My apologies," he said shyly, sheepishly reaching back with his hand and rubbing his neck.

Tamaki was about to yell at Takuto, to make it clear that Haruhi was _his_, but then he began to take some things into consideration.

_Haruhi and Takuto together as lovers… Interesting..._

Tamaki would have to think on some things later.

"Now, I'm sure you would like to get some rest after your day. Surely, you must be tired from all of this excitement?" he asked Takuto suggestively. He nodded.

Tamaki turned and called out across the room.

"Kaoru! Would you help Takuto take his luggage to his dormitory?" He pointed to a small accumulation of bags sitting in the corner of the room.

Kaoru looked over at the bags, then to Takuto and Tamaki, and smiled cheerfully and nodded. He walked away from Hikaru, who was too busy enticing a couple of girls to notice his brother's absence.

X~X~X

As they carried the luggage through school campus to the dorm buildings, Kaoru pulled out the note Tamaki had stuck onto the top bag of the pile.

Holding 3 bags in one hand and holding the note in the other, he tried to focus on the words inscribed on the tiny scrap of paper while keeping the bags hoisted up off the ground- all while trying to pay attention to where he was walking at the same time.

It was too late- he slipped on a slick spot on the floor and fell on his hindquarters, dropping his burden in the process.

As he sat there for a moment, partially dazed, he looked up and saw Takuto staring at him worryingly.

_Go ahead and laugh, I don't care. I've done this before, I'm used to this by now._ Kaoru mentally braced himself for laughter and humiliation.

There was a second of unbroken silence as Takuto walked over, crouched down while keeping a steady grip on his luggage, and reached a free hand out to Kaoru.

"You okay there, lad?" he asked concernedly.

Kaoru looked at him in surprise, then confusion. He gripped Takuto's hand as he was pulled back up onto his feet.

He nodded. "I'm fine, thank you."

Takuto stooped again as he grabbed some of his bags and handed them to Kaoru, keeping a few to add them to his own load.

"Thank you very much, that's very kind of you." Kaoru could already begin to feel himself blush a little from Takuto's politeness as he retrieved his share of the luggage.

Takuto bowed. "I aim to please," he replied, his lips curving into a polite smile.

The two began to continue walking to Takuto's dorm hallway. Kaoru decided to try to cheer things up by striking up some conversation with his new fellow Host.

"So, Takuto.. do you miss your old school?"

"A little," Takuto replied with his low, quiet, voice. "Though I have the feeling this school is going to be better."

"You like the Host Club?"

Takuto looked at him worryingly.

"What's wrong, Takuto?" Kaoru asked.

A look combining nervousness and confusion spread across his face.

Looking back towards the impending hallway, he spoke quietly.

"T-that girl.. Haruhi, I think it is?"

"Yeah, that's Haruhi. What about her?"

Takuto looked back at Kaoru with the puzzled and nervous expression still plastered on his face.

"Is it bad that I-I…"

He paused to take a deep breath.

"Is it bad that I like her?"

Kaoru thought for a moment, then shook his head.

"Nah. Some of the other Hosts like her too, including Tamaki…. _especially _Tamaki."

Takuto began to worry. "Do you think he would be mad if he found out that I like her too?"

"Of course not. He really seems to like you because you're great Host material; I don't think he'd be mad at you. Besides, he's not really.. the _aggressive _type, anyway."

"Then what about Haruhi? What do you think she would say?"

Kaoru looked over and saw Takuto beginning to freak out.

"Hey… it's okay." Kaoru said gently, smiling assuringly. "I think you two would be great together. Even if it's not.. you know.. romantic, you guys would be great friends and spend time together."

Takuto glanced at Kaoru, his nervousness beginning to ease.

"You really think so?" he asked hopefully.

Kaoru smiled and nodded. "Mhm. After all, you have moxie. Girls like moxie. I think Haruhi would enjoy your company."

Takuto calmed down. "Thank you," he said, slowly nodding his head gratefully.

"You're most certainly welcome." Kaoru replied cheerfully.

"Let's see now… #213… Ah! Here we are!" He stopped in front of the door to the dormitory, and Takuto followed suit.

They carefully set the luggage on the floor by the door, and Kaoru fished into his pocket, producing the room keys and handing them to Takuto.

Takuto reached out and grabbed the keys. "Thank you very much for helping me carry my things. I hope it wasn't a burden for you… if anything, I wished my butlers would have been here for assistance."

"No no, it was no burden at all. I am always here to help," Kaoru replied. He stretched out his hand, and Takuto extended his, and they shook hands.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Takuto," Kaoru said with a friendly grin.

Takuto grinned back. "Indeed, it was the same with me meeting you. I'm certainly looking forward to working with you in the Host Club. But I guess for now… I have some moving in to do." He gestured towards his bags.

"Would you like for me to help you?"

"No, thank you, I can take care of things from here." Takuto knelt down to pick up one of the suitcases and stood back up to unlock the door.

Kaoru turned and started walking back towards the music room, when-

"Oh, and Kaoru?"

"Yes?" Kaoru stopped and turned back to look at Takuto.

"Out of curiosity…"

Takuto seemed to be trying to figure out what to say next.

"Would you care to join me for a walk through the garden tomorrow afternoon?"

Kaoru was surprised by Takuto's invitation.

"Of course." He waved his hand a little and smiled. "See you later, Takuto."

"Take care, lad."

And with that, Kaoru turned and walked down the hallway, leaving Takuto to tend to his work.

_What a nice guy. How about that; it's like he has no memory of anything ever happening. Maybe this won't be so bad after all._

Kaoru suddenly sensed a feeling of joy, and even whistled a little tune to himself, his mouth turning up in a merry bow as he made his way back to the Host Club. He had a feeling he was going to like the new Takuto.


	6. The Gardens

**A/N: This chapter may not seem as eventful as most of the other chapters. It is mainly to serve as a cutscene, as it helps to set up and trigger some of the events that take place later in the story. Enjoy.~**

* * *

><p>{The next day}<p>

* * *

><p>*RING DUHLING DELING DUHLING DELING!*<p>

The bell rang, signaling the end of a long day of work at Ouran High School. The students began collecting their things and walking out the double-doors, down the stone steps, and out into the courtyards and to the dormitory buildings.

Amidst the crowd, a nervous Kaoru nudged his way past students, oftentimes while flashing enticing smiles to girls he recognized as regular Host Club customers, and walked towards the entrance to the gardens.

As he entered the gardens and quietly strolled around the exotic plants and bushes (most of which were wilted and bare from the autumnal season) he pretended to observe his surroundings while watching for Takuto.

_He's probably plotting to land a surprise jump-kick into my back and knock me to the ground, to beat me to a pulp. _Kaoru had tried to tell himself that Takuto had changed, that he wouldn't lay even a finger on him for as long as they continued seeing each other; but on the inside, Kaoru was still anxious.

He raised a hand to his eyes to help block his eyes from the bright sunlight, and turned in a circle on his heels, scanning the area for any signs of Takuto. Sure enough, there he was- sitting alone on a bench by the rose bushes, quietly watching red and yellow leaves dancing as they were blown through the air by the breeze.

Kaoru carefully approached him, taking care not to say or do anything to scare him.

Takuto looked up and saw Kaoru. He immediately jumped up on his feet.

"Kaoru! How wonderful it is to see you," he beamed, extending his hand. Kaoru took it and they shook hands.

_Why do we always shake hands when we see each other? ….. Eh, must be a British thing. _

Kaoru smiled and withdrew his hand. "Nice to see you, too," he replied.

Takuto clapped his hands together. "So…."

He jerked his thumb towards the gray path leading further into the gardens.

Smiling warmly, he asked politely, "Would you like to join me? I had just thought we could enjoy this lovely day to wander about outside, getting some sun and spending some time together… to bond, if you don't mind my intention."

Kaoru slowly began to believe that there was nothing wrong at this point. Takuto had simply wanted to go out for a walk. What's so bad about that?

_Wait… maybe he wants to beat me up once we're away from the others so they won't see._

He had a second thought. _Perhaps he really does just want to walk around. There's no concealed area in the gardens anyway; people would be able to see anything going on._

He spoke shyly. "S-sure, I suppose so." He didn't want to be rude and decline.

Takuto smiled and gestured for Kaoru to join his side. Together, the two began slowly walking down the stone path and into the maze of flower boxes and bushes.

There was a brief moment of unbroken silence as they walked. Kaoru decided to try getting himself used to talking to Takuto again.

"How did you like your first day of school?"

Takuto looked at him and smiled cheerfully.

"It was wonderful, thank you for asking. My teachers are well-mannered, my classes are great and easy to find, the school's design is beautiful… and surprisingly, the food here is actually edible as well."

"I'm guessing it's different from your old school?"

"Mhm," Takuto nodded, heaving a half-hearted sigh.

Kaoru was concerned- yet curious- now. "What was it like in school back in England?"

Takuto looked at Kaoru and smiled weakly, then looked ahead again.

"Well… it was rather miserable. Like Ouran students, we were required to wear specific uniforms as well. They were only in black, white, and grey- especially grey. There were different uniforms for different occasions- one for outdoors, one for indoors, and one for night clothes.

The teachers and staff were very strict. If you put one toe out of line, they had the right to punish you however they pleased- most of them preferred the old-fashioned style of punishment: seizing the student to be punished and beating them senseless with a large wooden paddle, and in front of the entire class."

"Why did you have to go to that school?" Kaoru asked concernedly.

Takuto took a deep breath, then responded with, "I have always wondered the same thing, but I've never found the answer."

Kaoru began to feel guilty about wanting to steer clear of Takuto. Maybe he really _had _changed. Kaoru opened his mouth to say something when-

"But Ouran…." Takuto began, a smile forming on his face. He circled his arms above his head to gesture to the school, addressing it in its entirety.

"You may have learned of it from the teachers; I used to live here in my early childhood, and I attended the elementary school until I moved away to Great Britain.

The elementary school is fine, but Ouran High School is amazing. A brilliant school, in my opinion. It looks very lovely, and it is much more… "lean", if I may, than the schools in England."

He looked at Kaoru, and grinned.

Kaoru could feel his stomach begin twisting into little knots. He had the urge to ask Takuto a certain question, but he feared he would end up making Takuto remember his past and come after him again.

_Come on, Kaoru. You can do this. Don't make it obvious, make it look professional. No… casual._

Kaoru took a deep breath. His stomach lurched, and his words came out carefully.

"Takuto... So, you actually used to come here, correct?"

"Yes, I did. Why ask?"

"Well… do you remember what it was like when you were in elementary school?"

Takuto looked at Kaoru curiously, but he replied, "I can only remember bits and pieces of it. The rest of it has faded away over the years. I don't remember very many of my school teachers or classmates or friends anymore… and that's not surprising." He grinned. " In populous places like England, it's oftentimes hard to keep track of faces."

Kaoru and Takuto shared a laugh, and Takuto continued.

"As I was saying… the Host Club is great. I love it, and I love you and the other Hosts…."

Takuto suddenly trailed off, a solemn expression beginning to form on his face.

"... And Haruhi."

Kaoru glanced at Takuto, and saw his eyes dreamily gazing at what seemed like nothing.

Takuto shook his head to bring himself back into reality, and looked worryingly at Kaoru.

"I've learned to accept that I've fallen in love with Haruhi," he spoke quietly.

He turned away and observed a wilted rose bush. "Every time she's near, my heart feels like it's stopped beating. Every time she smiles, I can only gaze at her, smitten. Every time she laughs or talks, she has the voice of an angel."

Takuto reached into the center of the rose bush and felt around for a moment. He carefully withdrew his hand- and on it, a dried rose, almost completely brown with decay.

He looked hopefully at Kaoru.

"Haruhi is beautiful, and despite I've only been here for a short time, I can't deny it…."

His green eyes shone brightly.

"….I love her."

They both stared as the rose crumpled at the lightest wisp of wind, the breeze carrying its dust-like remains away to somewhere unknown.

Takuto's hopeful expression faded and was replaced with doubt.

Kaoru walked over and placed a hand on Takuto's shoulder.

"Just give it some time, Takuto. One day, when the time is right, you can ask her to be yours." He smiled a little in hopes of cheering Takuto up.

Takuto looked at him curiously. "Really? You think so?"

Kaoru smiled and nodded. "I know you can do it."

Takuto smiled weakly, which quickly turned into a grin, his face brightening up with high hopes; but for some reason, Kaoru thought he saw a darkness for a second, Takuto's eyes flashing evilly and his thin black eyebrows furrowing slightly.

Alarmed, Kaoru quickly changed the subject, gesturing back towards the pathway.

"Shall we keep going?" he asked politely.

Takuto smiled again. "Indeed, we shall."

They continued walking through the gardens; their voices could be heard throughout the courtyards.

X~X~X

A few hours later, they returned to Takuto's dormitory hall.

After spending the afternoon together, they had become the best of friends. Kaoru felt almost completely confident that Takuto wasn't after him anymore.

They stopped when they reached Takuto's room.

"Well, Kaoru.."

Takuto shyly rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess I won't be able to talk to you much since I'll be starting Host training with Tamaki."

"Don't worry too much, Takuto. I'll be fine, and you will be, too. Tamaki's the best Host we've got. After all, he _is _the Host Club King." Kaoru smiled assuringly.

The boys performed their now-regular routine of hand shaking, and bid each other farewell.

"Take care, Takuto," Kaoru said, giving Takuto a warm smile.

Takuto smiled back. "You too, lad." He opened the door to his dormitory and stepped inside. The door slammed shut, the sound resonating through the hallway as Kaoru walked back to the music room.

{Later that night}

* * *

><p>"I'm so excited to see Takuto as a Host! What about you, Kaoru?"<p>

The Hitachiin twins were in their dormitory together, preparing for bed. It was 9:30 at night, and the moon could be seen slowly ascending into the sky, its pale white face illuminating the otherwise dimly-liy streets and its white light shining through the twins' dorm windows.

Kaoru was in the bathroom, brushing his teeth. He quickly spit out a mouthful of white foam before answering his brother.

"I am, too," he replied half-heartedly.

Hikaru walked into the bathroom with Kaoru and looked at him worryingly. "What's the matter?" he asked.

Kaoru looked up at his brother. "Hm?"

He waved his hand as if to shoo something away. "It's nothing. I'm just tired. That's all."

"I'm guessing from that walk you went on with Takuto earlier today?"

"Mhm."

"How _did _that go? Did you have fun?"

Kaoru walked out of the bathroom and into the main bedroom, jumping onto the bed. Hikaru followed after him, sitting next to him on the bed.

"It was actually pretty great," Kaoru replied. "We talked about all kinds of things, like his life in England compared to life here in Bunkyo, and we learned more about one another. We're pretty close now."

Hikaru smiled. "That's good. Do you think he's okay now after what's happened in the past?"

"Oh, yeah," he grinned. "It feels almost as if it never happened at all. Not to mention that it looks like Takuto's starting to like things here. He's especially looking forward to being a Host."

"That's great!" Hikaru exclaimed. "It's good to see that he's enthusiastic about it. Team spirit is a key concept in the Host Club."

He pulled back the blankets on the bed, and he and Kaoru climbed in.

"Good night, Kaoru." Hikaru said as they embraced one last time.

Kaoru yawned. "Good night." He reached over to the bedside table and turned the lamp off. The room instantly darkened, the moonlight coming through the window now being the only light source.

A few minutes later, Hikaru was fast asleep- but Kaoru was still awake, quietly staring at the ceiling, his mind filled with random thoughts. He oftentimes had nights like this, where he couldn't sleep. He would just pass the time by laying in bed, staring at something in the twins' room, counting sheep, thinking of random scenarios and ideas, doing something until he fell asleep at last.

Kaoru suddenly heard a voice. It was quiet at first, but it slowly grew louder- it eventually seemed as if there was not just one, but several, talking at the same time. He sat up in bed, his ears pricked for the sound. He quietly slipped from the bed and padded over to the window, rubbing away the tired from his eyes and squinting to get a better focus.

His eyes immediately widened. The street below was quiet and still, except for a young man dressed in a pastel-blue Ouran suit, walking silently and swiftly along the pavement.

The boy suddenly stopped in the middle of the street, a combination of the moonlight and streetlight shining down upon him as he stood still. He seemed to look around suspiciously, as if he were afraid he was being followed.

Kaoru gasped. The boy had long, carefully groomed black hair, which glistened in the light. For a moment, he removed something from his face, pulled something out of his pocket, and seemed to do something with the first. It appeared as if he was cleaning a pair of glasses.

_Wait a minute… That looks like Takuto! What's he doing at this time of night? _

Takuto replaced the glasses and looked around one last time. When it seemed as if the coast was clear, he raised two fingers to his mouth and blew. A clear, high whistle pierced the silence.

Kaoru watched quietly as Takuto ceased and fell silent, seemingly watching and waiting for something to happen.

A small gang of brutish-looking boys appeared. They walked up to Takuto, crowding around him as they performed some sort of greeting, then it grew quiet as Takuto seemed to be speaking of some dastardly plan to them.

Takuto appeared to stop talking, and the gang broke out into cheers. By now, Kaoru had grown suspicious and curious to know what they were doing.

Kaoru continued to observe the scene. By now, his curiosity was at its highest. He wanted to know what was happening.

As Takuto stood amongst the gang, he looked around for a moment, then turned his head straight up towards Kaoru's window. He shot an evil-looking stare in his direction, and Kaoru quickly panicked and crouched down, hidden on the floor underneath the windowsill.

He waited for a moment, then carefully stood up and watched from the window again, but saw the gang taking off into the darkness again, and Takuto laughing to himself as he walked back towards the dormitory buildings.

Kaoru felt his stomach tie itself in knots. He had a bad feeling that something was going to happen, but he just didn't know what. He decided to give it a rest.

He forced himself to think some positive thoughts as he returned to the bed and slipped under the covers with Hikaru.

_Calm down, Kaoru. He was probably just meeting with some old friends…. Everything's fine, everything's fine…._

Kaoru stared at the ceiling for a little bit as he waited for his mind to shut up, but he soon found himself falling into an uneasy sleep.


	7. Takuto's Invitation

**A/N: Sorry for the delay, I've been rather busy and haven't found much free time to write. Now that I'm going to be back up and running, I present to you, Chapter 7. Enjoy.~**

* * *

><p>{2 months later}<p>

* * *

><p>Tamaki gently rubbed Takuto's shoulders.<p>

"Are you ready?" he whispered, leaning in behind him.

Takuto turned his head a little to find Tamaki next to him, looking a little worried.

He smiled boldly, and Tamaki could see confidence glinting in his eyes. "You spent the last 2 months preparing me for this day. Of course I'm ready."

Tamaki beamed proudly. "You will be great."

The Hosts fell silent as they turned to find a stern (as always) Mori flinging open the music room doors, then quickly leaping out of the way to avoid being trampled by the oncoming crowd of noisy, overly-excited girls.

Takuto was suddenly pulled up out of his seat and pushed forward. He turned around to find an excited Tamaki looking at him, gesturing him to go on.

He smiled, then turned back around, dusted and straightened up his uniform, and started watchfully patrolling the music room.

As Takuto watched, some of the other Hosts had already set off to work, doing what do they do best- pleasing girls, mesmerizing them with romantic conversations and compliments.

He carefully looked around- and spotted a young girl sitting alone at a tea table. She was watching the Hosts as they entertained their other clients. He quietly walked over and sat down at the table with her.

The girl, unaware of Takuto's presence, turned around to find him sitting across the table from her. For a moment, she was alarmed, but she seemed to become curious.

Takuto smiled warmly. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," he spoke with a voice that almost perfectly matched Tamaki's King-of-the-Host-Club tone.

"But I couldn't help to notice how lonely you were over here by yourself. Care to join me?"

He invitingly held out his hand. The girl looked at it curiously for a moment, then shyly reached out and took it.

She was pulled out of her seat, and Takuto released her hand.

As she watched, slow, gentle ballroom seemed to begin playing in the background, and Takuto bowed slightly, reaching his hand out again.

He spoke warmly and softly. "May I have this dance with you, m'lady?"

The girl was stunned. "S-sure," she stuttered.

Takuto took his position- one arm wrapped around her, his hand touching the center of her back, and his other hand holding hers. The girl did the same, but with her hand on his shoulder, and they began slowly waltzing around the room.

As they stepped together in time, Takuto began to speak sweetly to his newfound partner.

"I say, you are quite the dancer."

The girl blushed. "Thank you," she replied bashfully.

"You know, I don't see why they would leave you all alone like that, especially considering your beauty and grace."

"You think I'm beautiful?"

Takuto gave a little laugh. "Of course. Every girl is beautiful, but you are, by far, one of the most alluring young women I have ever laid eyes on," he spoke with his thick accent.

His jade-green eyes flashed with every charm-laced word, and the girl began to find herself strongly attracted to him. She blushed again, trying not to grin.

They continued to dance, slowly spinning and stepping around the music room, and some of the other Hosts and their clients stopped to watch in awe.

Tamaki was most pleased with what he was seeing- he was practically beaming from ear to ear.

At last, the dance ended with the girl being spun one last time, then slowly dipped back. There was a moment of silence as she was held, still dipped, for a moment, then carefully pulled up.

She and Takuto faced each other, and she lowered her head and curtsied elegantly, looking up at Takuto with big, hopeful brown eyes and a slight smile.

Takuto slowly sank into a bow. "Thank you," he spoke quietly, continuing to sink lower until he was down on one knee.

And with one swift gesture, he gently took her trembling hand and raised it to his lips, planting a soft kiss onto her skin.

The girl could not contain her excitement anymore. The instant Takuto lowered her hand, she swooned. As everyone watched in surprise, she fell to the floor, right on the spot.

The room instantly erupted in applause. Takuto, who was shocked by even his own performance, stood up and turned to find the Hosts, gathered in a group, clapping and cheering and hooting at him. Tamaki stood amidst the elated chaos, beaming proudly. He could not have been any more proud of Takuto. Takuto could only grin back, feeling the same about himself.

X~X~X

"Kaoru! Wonderful to see you again."

Takuto and Kaoru performed their usual greeting: the friendly, gentlemanly handshake. They were in the main courtyard with the other Hosts and some of their Host Club clients. After having to carry Takuto's first client back to her room and somehow lure the others, who were practically clinging to Takuto like magnets, out of the music room, Tamaki declared that a celebration was in proper order.

They talked while watching everyone else having fun and enjoying the party. Tamaki and Hikaru were having some sort of conversation as it seemed, or perhaps Tamaki was giving Hikaru a glorified lecture, based on Tamaki's overly-upbeat attitude and Kaoru's rather annoyed expression.

Honey was sitting atop one of the dessert tables, munching on a large slice of chocolate cake (Kaoru laughed a bit to himself at this- Honey was small, but he was famous for his fetish for cake). Mori (as always) stood away from the bustle of the party, standing silently and still, almost statue-like, keeping a watchful eye over his cousin and the rest of the guests.

"So, this is what an Ouran-style party looks like," Takuto sighed.

Kaoru looked over at him, a hint of concern on his face. "Are you alright?"

Takuto seemed to be in a trance, but quickly jerked and looked, alarmed at Kaoru. "Oh!"

He calmed down, quickly running one hand through his glossy black hair and pushing his glasses further up the bridge of his nose with the other.

Clearing his throat, he apologized quietly. "Sorry about that, Kaoru."

"Are you okay?"

Takuto looked up at Kaoru worryingly. "I think I might need your help with pulling something off."

Kaoru was a little worried. "What's up?"

"It's Haruhi."

They turned to find Haruhi, dressed in her disguise- a male Ouran uniform- as she talked to some of her regular clients who tagged along for the party.

"Are you still…. you know.. in love with her?"

Takuto smirked a little, then laughed. "Of course, but there's something else as well."

He straightened up, and cleared his throat again. He was about to say something, but he seemed to be afraid to say it.

Kaoru tried to encourage him. "It's okay, I can help you. What's the matter?"

Takuto remained silent for a moment, then took a deep breath and replied quietly and calmly,

"I'm going to take Haruhi on a date. I'm wanting to take her to a formal dinner at this rather fancy restaurant on the other side of town."

Kaoru was stunned. "T-that's great, Takuto!" he exclaimed, then looked around, realizing he shouted.

He looked at Takuto again, quieting his voice more so the others wouldn't hear. "I'm really proud of you for wanting to do that. What would you like for me to help you with?"

Takuto looked up at Kaoru, his green eyes flashing with more worry. "Truth be told, I've never taken a girl to a dinner date. I feel like I need to have a… oh, what do they call it…" he turned away, rubbing his chin as he was trying to come up with the right word.

"_Wingman_?" Kaoru suggested.

"Yes! A wingman!" Takuto looked back up at Kaoru. "I would like to have a wingman join me. For nothing much, just to be there in case if something goes wrong." His eyes filled with worry again.

"Is it too much to ask that you come with us as my wingman? It would mean a great lot to me."

Kaoru sensed no danger with this little invitation. After all, it was just a dinner date. He would just have to go and pretend to be another customer and just watch Takuto and Haruhi enjoy their night together and make sure everything's good.

_What's the worst that could happen?_

"Of course I will! Anything for you, Takuto." Kaoru replied, smiling warmly.

Takuto smiled back, his eyes full of hope. "You're one of the best chaps I've ever met. Really, you are."

He spread out his arms invitingly, and Kaoru flinched. He quickly found that Takuto was only offering a friendly hug.

_God, what is wrong with you? The guy just wants a hug, and you jump away like some kind of ninja._

Kaoru quickly dismissed that thought as he cautiously teetered forward. Spreading out his arms, the boys embraced, holding it for a moment before parting.

Takuto smiled warmly again, but immediately turned back to look at Haruhi. He sighed dreamily.

He turned back up at Kaoru, the hope in his eyes now mixed with worry again.

"What's wrong?" Kaoru asked.

"I'm afraid to ask…" Takuto spoke quietly, lowering his head as if in defeat. Kaoru immediately understood.

He rested a hand on Takuto's shoulder and leaned forward closely. He replied softly,

"It's okay, it'll be fine. Just take a deep breath, and play casual. Just do your normal thing, but be confident."

Takuto slowly drew in a deep breath, held it for a moment, then slowly released it. The tension in his shoulders melted away.

He looked at Kaoru again, his eyes indicating hesitation. "Okay."

Takuto turned in Haruhi's direction. He quickly polished his glasses, straightened his tie, and spent a moment making sure his hair was neatly slicked back. He then took another deep breath, and carefully wove his way past the crowd and up to Haruhi.

Kaoru pretended to be sampling the punch, occasionally glancing at and watching Takuto from afar. As he watched, Takuto gently tapped Haruhi on the shoulder. She turned around to find him standing behind her.

_Okay, okay, we're getting somewhere…._

"Ohmygosh, it's Kaoru!"

Kaoru turned to find a group of girls standing behind him, pointing and squealing,

"Look at his hair, look at his hair!"

"I can't believe it's actually him!"

"He's so much hotter in real life!"

"Can we cuddle you?"

The girls bounced around in excitement.

Kaoru lifted a finger and opened his mouth to protest. "I-"

He was cut short as he was trampled. He was tugged at, pulled, pinched, thrown about in the air, caught by the girls and thrown about again.

As they cleared away, Kaoru could be seen, lying on the ground in a heap. He sat up, dazed, and put a hand to his throbbing head. Groaning a little, he stood up and looked down.

His once-crisp and clean uniform had become torn and dirty. As he ran a hand through his hair, he could it feel it was ruffled and messy from the girls touching and playing with it.

_Ugh…._

"Kaoru!" a voice suddenly called from behind him.

_Takuto! _Kaoru recognized the voice.

He turned to find Takuto weaving his way past guests and right up to him.

"Uhh, hehe, hey." Kaoru blushed and tried to straighten himself up. He hated looking like a mess in front of anyone, except Hikaru.

"You alright lad? You look like you were in quite a barney."

"Hm? Oh, no…" Kaoru laughed and looked at himself, dusting his front off. "Some girls just went a little nuts." He looked back up at Takuto.

"How'd it go?"

Takuto seemed to be holding back his excitement, a huge grin forming on his face. He then burst out,

"She said she would be delighted to join me!"

Kaoru was stunned. "You mean, she said 'yes'?"

"Of course!"

"W-well, that's great!"

"Why, of course it is!"

Takuto threw his arms around Kaoru, who stood blankly and dazed, beginning to become a bit overwhelmed by Takuto's overjoyfulness.

"Thank you for helping me, Kaoru."

His excitement instantly faded as he began to worry again.

"But will you still be able to join us later tonight?"

"Mhm. Don't worry, I'll be there for you." Kaoru replied reassuringly. "I promise."

He watched as Takuto looked up at Kaoru, beaming proudly. "Very well."

Takuto reached into his pocket and produced a small white card and a ballpoint pen. He clicked the pen, and quickly scrawled something onto the card and handed it to Kaoru.

As Kaoru scanned the card, it read, in small but extremely tidy handwriting:

**Chez Bisco Hatori, 7:45 p.m.**

He looked up and was surprised to see Takuto walking up the winding walkway towards the dormitories. Kaoru could hear him whistling a merry tune to himself as he cheerily bounced past guests and pedestrians.

"See you then!" Takuto called out behind him.

Kaoru stood, dazed from what had just happened as he watched Takuto going back towards the dorms.

_Well, that was easier than I thought. Hope it's like that tonight._

He suddenly felt his stomach tying itself into a knot. He tried to calm himself down.

_Relax, Kaoru. It will be fine. You just have to watch them talk and enjoy dinner, probably like one of those stereotypical couples…_

The knot came undone.

_What's the worst that can happen?_


End file.
